Vehicle-body.



PATENTBD JULY 14, 1903.

L. PRIEST.

vVEHICIFE BODY.

A.APPLnmTIoN FILED un. '1, 1902.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l., I

NO MODEL.

fammi, www,

PATENTBD JULY 14, 1903.

A E. PRIEST. .VEHICLE BODY.

APPLICATION FILED APB.. '1, 1902.

2 SHEETS-,SHEET 2.

N0 MODEL.

y tional view through the same.

:Patented July 14, 1903.

ATENT OFFICE.

LOUIS PRIEST, OF FLINT, MICHIGAN.

vEHioL'EfBouY.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters PatentNO. 733,676, dated VJuly 14,1903.

Application filed April '7, 1902. Serial No. 101.713. .(No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known thatI, LOUIS PRIEST, a citizen of the United States,residing at Flint, in the county of Genesee and State of Michigan, haveinvented a newand useful Vehicle-Body, of which the following is aspecification.

The present invention relates to vehiclebodies; and the object thereofis to provide a structure which is much cheaper than that ordinarilyemployed and at the same time is Without the objectionable features ofthe same.

In the usual construction the side Walls or panels are made of Wood, andit is practically impossible to prevent their warping and checking orcracking when they are subjected to the extremes of temperature. Then,again, it has been the custom to employ screws in the construction,which screws are countersunk and afterward covered by wooden plugs thatare dipped in glue and driven into the openings over the screw-heads.Manufacturers have great difficulty with these plugs, as they very oftenshrink and drop out or crack the finish around the opening, therebynecessitating the refinishing of the body. Furthermore, considerabletrouble is experienced in preventing the corners cracking, due to theexpansion and contraction of the Wood.

It is the aim of this invention to provide a structure in which all theobjections above noted are eliminated, said structure beingv very cheapand not requiring expensive ma-v chinery in the manufacture thereof.

The preferred embodiment of this invention is fully illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a perspective View of avehiclebody constructed in accordance With the present invention. Fig. 2is a vertical sec- Fig. 3 is a detail horizontal sectional view throughone of the corners. Fig. 4 is a detail perspective View of one of thecorners, showing the shield removed therefrom.- Fig. 5 is a perspectiveview of said shield. Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view, on an enlargedscale, more clearly showing the construction of the walls and the meansfor securing the cap-strip in place thereon. Fig. '7 is a detailperspective view of one of the eyelets employed.

Similar nu merals of reference designate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawings.

In the construction of the invention a suitable frame is employed,preferably consisting of side and end sills 10 and 1l, cornerposts12,and upright seatposts 13,130 the upper ends of which are secu redrack-bars 14, that support the seat. Only the skeleton of the seat isshown, and this skeleton comprises seat frame-bars 15, back frame-bars16, including a center-brace 17, and a spring-supporting bar 18.

The important feature to be observed in this invention is theconstruction of the Walls of the body and seat and the manner ofsecuring the same to the frame. These Walls each comprise anintermediate upright coreplate 19, preferably of wood, and outer andinner sheathings 20, preferably of paper or similar fibrous material.These three elements or members are glued securely together, so as topractically form a solid Wall. Their upper edges are protected from wearand from the elements by means of a cap- 'strip 21, preferably of metaland bowed in the manner shown in Figs. 2 and 6. This cap-plate overlapsthe upper edge of the Wall and is secured in place by havingindentedportions 22, that engage in the outer faces of the sheathingsand securely hold said strip against accidental displacement. At thecorners the outer sheathings are cut away, as shown, and the outer faceof the core is covered with a fabric 23, that may be of canvas,Wire-netting, or the like, said canvas joining the meeting ends of theadjacent Walls, and thus securely fastening the joint against opening.Eyelets 24 are secured to the outer face of the core. As shown in Fig.4, said eyelets .comprise body-plates having spurs 25, which areembedded in the core, and through these eyelets are passed fasteningdevices 26, in the form of screws, that engage in the corner-posts 12.The corner-posts are preferably braced by means of curved braces 27,secured to their upper ends and to the side walls or other portions ofthe body-frame. The fabric 23 and the fastening devices areY covered bya corner-shield 28, formed of a single piece of cardboard or paper andof the proper shape to fit in the cut-out portions of the wall, beingsecured in place by glue or IOC other fastening means. The side and rearWalls of the seat are constructed in substantially the same manner asthat of the body, said Walls being secured to the frame in the mannershown, so that they Will not interfere with the upholstering of theseat.

The advantages for this construction will be perfectly apparent. In thefirst place the body-walls are of very inexpensive material, as thepaper ma)7 be made in proper shape before application, so that thereneed be little waste of this material, and the intermediate core-platecan be made of inexpensive lumber. At the same time the cap-stripprotects the Wall from Wear and from the action of the elements. Therecan be no cracking or checking at the corners, as the joint issecuredtogether by the fabric and the outer surface is continuous at thecorner, being made so by the sheathing, which also covers thefastening-screws, and thus eliminates the necessity for plugs or thelike. It Will thus be seen that after the body is finished there is verylittle chance of checking or cracking at the joint.

From the foregoing it is thought that the construction, operation, andmany advantages of the herein-described invention Will be apparent tothose skilled in the art Without further description, and it Will beunderstood that various changes inthe size, shape, proportion, and minordetails of construction may be resorted to without departing from thespirit or sacrificing anyof th'e advantages of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

l. In a vehic1ebody, the combination with a post, of angularly-disposedwalls secured to the post and having their ends abutted to form a joint,and wire fabric fastened to both walls and bridging thejoint betweenthem, said fabric extending substantially the entire length of thejoint.

2. In avehic1e,avehiclebody having a wall, said wall comprising anintermediate coreplate, paper sheathings secured to the inner and outerfaces of the core-plate, and a metallic cap-strip covering the upperedges of the core-plate and sheathings embracing the same and secured tothe latter.

3. In a vehicle-body, a Wall comprising a Wooden core-plate, papersheathings secured to the inner and outer faces of the core-plate, and ametallic cap-strip covering the upper edges of the core-plate andsheathings, and havingindented portions that engage with the sheathingsand constituting fastening means for the strip.

4. In a vehicle-body, the combination with a post, of a Wall arrangedagainst the post, fastening devices passing through the Wall andengaging the post, and a shield-plate secured to the exterior face ofthe Wall and covering the fastening devices.

5. In a vehicle-body, the combination with a cornerpost, of meetingWalls arranged against the post and having cut-out portions in theirouter faces, fastening devices passying through the Walls from thecut-out portions and engaging the post, and a cornershield fitted in thecut-out portions and covering the outer ends of the fastening devices.6. In a vehicle-body, the combination with a post, of a Wall having aportion resting against the post and comprising separate layers securedtogether, and a fastening device extending frorn one of the intermediatelayers through the Wall and engaging the post. 7. In a vehicle-body, thecombination with a post, of a Wall comprising a core, and an innersheathing secured to the core and resting against the post, a fasteningdevice passing through the wall and core and engaging the post, and ashield secured to the outer side of the core and covering the fasteningdevice.

8. In a vehicle-body, the combination With a post, of a wall comprisinga core and an inner sheathing secured to the core and resting againstthe post, an eyelet secured to the core, a fastening device passingthrough the eyelet and Wall into the post, and a shield secured to thecore and covering the fasteningV device and eyelet.

9. In a vehicle-body, the combination with `a post, of a Wall comprisinga core and an intermediate sheathing secured to the core and restingagainst the post, fabric arranged against the outer face of the core, afastening device passing through the Wall and engaging the post, and ashield covering the fabric and the fastening device.

10. In a vehicle-body,the combination with a corner-post, ofangularly-dispcsed walls arranged against the post and comprising aninner sheathing, a core and an outer sheathing, said outer sheathingterminating short of the post, fastening devices passing through thecore and inner sheathing and engaging the post, and a corner-shieldarranged over the fastening devices and filling the space left by theouter sheathing.

ll. In a vehicle-body, a Wall comprising a Wooden core-plate, papersheathings secured to the inner and outer faces of the core-plate, and ametallic cap-strip covering the upper edges of the core-plate andsheathings, and secured to the sheathings only.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aflxedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS PRIEST.

Witnesses:

GEO. D. WILLIAMS, .BELLE HALPIN.

IIO

